Plus One Robotics has joined Pittsburgh Robotics Network's more than 100 companies and leaders in the Pittsburgh community. As the company grows its footprint, Pittsburgh’s expanding robotics ecosystem offers robust opportunities for market growth, recruitment and partnerships with universities.
The company, which uses artificial intelligence (AI) and 3D vision to automate robots in warehouses and distribution centers, will make its home in Oakland’s Pittsburgh Innovation District (PID) – a hub anchored by key R&D institutions Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh.
“We are thrilled to welcome Plus One and its industry-leading AI and robotics solutions to Pittsburgh,” said Joel Reed, executive director, Pittsburgh Robotics Network. “Our region is uniquely positioned with innovative research, development and engineering that is furthering Pittsburgh’s reputation as a recognized world-leading hub for robotics and AI. Pittsburgh also has a deep roster of logistics and material handling companies. It is no surprise that they made the decision to expand their operations here, and their presence is emblematic of the growth of robotics in our region.”
Since 2017, more than $4.3 billion in venture capital and private equity has been invested in Pittsburgh’s robotics firms, which directly employ more than 7,000 people in the region. The Texas-based company sees Pittsburgh and its 100+ robotics organizations as the perfect area to facilitate that continuous growth, and to connect them to world-class talent.
“Being close to other start-ups in the district and to Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh was very important for us so we can situate ourselves in that high-energy, relevant, forward-looking and optimistic environment, '' said Bener Suay, senior R&D developer, Plus One Robotics. “Plus One Robotics is future-focused, industry-leading, and we are deeply knowledgeable in our field. We feel that these pillars are very much aligned with our neighbors in Oakland and other robotics companies across the Pittsburgh robotics ecosystem.”
Carnegie Mellon University founded the world’s first robotics Ph.D. program in 1988 and drives innovation through its Robotics Institute. The Robotics Institute also includes the National Robotics Engineering Center (NREC), which has been transforming robotics research into practical industry solutions for more than 25 years. Pittsburgh also offers a robust talent pool with 12,000 technology degrees and certificates awarded annually, ranking as one of the top five cities in the United States for college students.
Pittsburgh has been dubbed as the birthplace of self-driving cars, which date back to CMU’s research in the 1980s, and the city serves as a development and testing ground for world-leading autonomous vehicle companies such as Argo AI, Aurora, Locomation, Motional and Waymo.
Last week at the Pittsburgh Robotics Network’s ‘State of Our Autonomous Vehicle Industry,’ event, the organization released its Pittsburgh Robotics Cluster Profile, which focused on the region’s unique position for fostering growth and opportunity in global robotics and autonomy industries.
“Regions who are able to build out their technology ecosystems to support this type of integration will be poised to realize major economic growth,” said Reed. “In the process of creating this Robotics Cluster Profile, we've identified over 100 robotics companies and over forty supporting organizations, making the Pittsburgh region one of the largest and most robust robotics ecosystems in the world. We're now poised for even more growth.”
